Page 12 of Ride or Dies

“I wouldn’t put it past you.”

“Why would you say that?” I dropped onto my bed and leaned back against the wall, arms behind my head as if I didn’t have a care in the world. “When a woman’s with me, she wants everyone to know it.”

“I’m sure you think that,” she said, walking over to the door that led to the hallway. She didn’t open it though, instead just turning back around and going back to the bathroom door. “All you Bradshaw boys. Think you’re God’s gift to women.”

“Well, you have kissed two of us now,” I said, ignoring the bite of jealousy when I thought of the way Levi had kissed her. “You tell me.”

She gave me a look I couldn’t read. “I don’t think about that kiss.”

Even though she wasn’t naming it, I knew she was talking about the one time I’d crossed that line with her. The summer before her senior year, and right before she turned seventeen, we both got wasted at a party and I kissed her. I’d stopped us before it went any further. She was legal, but she wasn’t sober enough to consent.

I’d told myself more than once that I did the right thing. That I would’ve been taking advantage of her. But I’d always avoided thinking too hard about what I would’ve done if we were both sober.

“Damn,” I said. “That’s cold. I didn’t think it was that bad.”

“Well, you’d know all about being cold, wouldn’t you,” she said.

I winced, but I figured I deserved that. After our kiss, I had pretty much ignored her until she left Bedford.

“I don’t want to talk about what happened back then,” she said abruptly. “Most of my memories of back then aren’t anything I want to think about too much.”

“Then let’s talk about something else.” I patted the space next to me. “What do you want to talk about?”

She shrugged but sat down. Her body was still stiff, and she kept twisting her hands together. She’d kept her composure while Randall was threatening her, and even through telling us about everything that had happened in Nashville. It didn’t surprise me that she looked like she was on the edge of freaking out.

“We could talk about how interested you were in what was going on when we came in.” I gave her my most charming smile.

“What?” She jumped like I’d physically startled her. “I wasn’t interested in that.”

I looked at her a little harder, this time wondering if the blush on her cheeks was from more than embarrassment.

“It’s okay that you were.” I pushed the issue. “We don’t judge here. As long as everyone’s having fun, it’s all good.”

“I’m not judging,” she mumbled.

“I should warn you that you’re probably going to see a lot more while you’re here.” I bumped my shoulder against hers, but she didn’t even look at me. “Some of the guys’ll walk around with their dicks just hanging out.”

That jealousy reared its head again and I pushed it back. She wasn’t going to want any of the guys here, so it didn’t matter if they fucked right in front of her or decided to whip it out for some reason. And even if she did want someone, that was none of my business.

“On second thought, maybe I should just keep you in my bedroom the whole time,” I suggested.

I was saying it to try to get a rise out of her, I told myself. It wasn’t because I liked the idea of having her all to myself.

When Evie shrugged without a comment, worry started to set in. I’d never not gotten a reaction out of her. I knew how to push her buttons. Hell, I’d perfected it because I liked doing it. Now, though, she was just sitting there, twisting her fingers together, while her eyes glazed over.

I needed to snap her out of this.

At least, that was the half-truth I told myself as I reached for her.

Cupping her chin, I turned her face toward me and captured her mouth. I kept the kiss softer than the one Levi had given her, giving her the chance to pull away if she didn’t want it. Instead, I felt her break out of her daze, leaning into the kiss. I groaned as her mouth opened, our tongues meeting, stroking.

She moved suddenly, straddling my lap as she fought for control of the kiss. I nipped her bottom lip and grinned at the sharp intake of breath. I liked that she pushed back, that she wasn’t going to just take what I gave her. I wanted her to take too. I wanted her to want me.

Her nails dug into my shoulders through my t-shirt, the jolts of pain only turning me on more. I grabbed her hips, holding her in place as I ground against her. She moaned, rolling her hips as if she needed that pressure and friction as much as I did.

I slid one hand under the skirt of her dress and cursed as I found less fabric than I expected. She was wearing a fucking thong. I palmed her ass, loving the soft feel of her skin over the tightening muscle as she rocked back and forth. I was just deciding whether or not I should risk sliding aside that tiny bit of lace to get to the good stuff when someone knocked at the door.

“Mason? You and Evie in there?”

---